The Problem of Legal Definition of Indigenous Peoples of the Arctic

Modern Russian law uses such concepts as "Arctic population," "small indigenous peoples of the Arctic," "Arctic sedentary population," "Arctic incomers," "Arctic permanent population," and "Arctic indigenous people”. In international science, the term "indigenous peoples of the Arctic" refers to all peoples that meet the criteria of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples of the World. In the Russian practice the term «indigenous people» means only small indigenous peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East, with their number up to 50 thousand people. There is a legal conflict in the Russian law and science: what is the status of indigenous peoples of the Arctic, de-jure and de-facto exceeding the number of 50 thousand people? These are Sakha (Yakuts), Komi, Karelians, who have lived in the Arctic since ancient times.

The decision of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) in the case on the interpretation of the provisions of Article 42 of the Constitution (Fundamental Law) of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) No 4-P of October 21, 2016 defines the Sakha people as the indigenous people of Yakutia, whose territory is Arctic.

According to Federal Law No. 193-FZ of 13.07.2020 "On State Support of Entrepreneurial Activities in the Arctic Zone of the Russian Federation", a program is being developed in which measures of state support apply to traditional economic activities only and exclusively of the indigenous small-numbered peoples living in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation.

Meanwhile, indigenous small-numbered peoples of the North and representatives of other ethnic communities, which are not indigenous small-numbered peoples of the North, but which permanently reside in places of traditional residence and traditional economic activities of small-numbered peoples, due to historically developed living conditions, climatic and territorial features of the Arctic zone have the same forms of economy and good neighborliness.

The legal conflict violates the territorial-neighbor principle created on the basis of the value of customary law of mutual assistance, social justice and good neighborliness.

The author proposes to extend the norms and measures of state support in the Arctic to the representatives of ethnic communities that are not indigenous peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East, but which permanently reside in the places of traditional economic activities of small peoples and jointly carry out traditional economic activities of small peoples.

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